Wrapping-machine



(N0 Model.) 2 She .t Sh t l.

l s. D. TR1-PP. P s ee WRAPPING MACHINE. No. 595,421. Patented Deo.14,1897.

(No Mode1.) 2 sheetssn'een 2 l S. D. TRIP'P.

WRAPPING MACHINE.

No. 595,421. Patented Deo. Y14, 1897.

UNITED 'STATES PATInuTA OFFICE.

SETH D. TRIPP, OF LYNN, MASSACHUSETTS.

WRAPPING'MACHINE.

SPECIFICATION-formingpart of Letters Patent No. 595,421, dated December14, 1897. Application filed July 31, 1896. Serial No. 601,167. (Nomodel.)

T0 @ZZ whom it may concer-12,:

Beit known that I, SETH D. TRIPP, of Lynn, county of Essex, State ofMassachusetts, have invented an Improvement in Wrapping-Machines, ofwhich the following description, in connection with the accompanyingdrawings, is a specification, like letters and figures on the` drawingsrepresenting like parts.

. This invention relates to Wrappingmachines and is intended as animprovement upon the wrapping-machine shown and described in UnitedStates Patents No. 472,202, dated April 5, 1892, No. 5l6,136,datedvMarch l6, 1894, and No. 548,677, dated October 29,

1895, which is especially designed for wrapping more or less sphericalobjects, such as oranges. Heret-ofore it has been customary in machinesof this kind to place the oran ge or other article in a wrapper and thenform a twist in the gathered-in edges of the wrapper, either by holdingthe article and twisting the gathered-in edges or by holding thegathered-in edges and rotating the article, and such a twist given tothe gathered-in edges holds the Wrapper in place.

I find in practice that by gathering inthe edges of the wrapper and thenfirmly jamming them together or pinching them with jaws which areconstructed and arranged to more or less corrugate, score, or indentthem the wrapper having its gathered-in edges so jammed or pinchedtogether will hold onto the orange or other article sufiiciently for allpractical purposes; and therefore my present invention consists inproviding a Wrappingmachine with a set of jaws or nippers adapted tofirmly jam together and more or less corrugate, score, orindent thegathered-in edges of the wrapper.

The invention also consists in a holder for the orange or other articlewhich is constructed and arranged to not only hold the article with theWrapper more or less wrapped about it while its edges are being gatheredin and jammed together, but is also adapted to rise and fall so that vitmay approach the holder or rest upon which the wrapper is deposited,

' and while dwelling directly beneath it may receive the article andwrapper and then descend, and, furthermore, its construction is suchthat as the article is forced down into its grasp with the wrapper by asuitable plunger provided for the purpose it will operate to lay thewrapper upon or about the article preparatory to having its edgesgathered in and jammed together, thereby obviating the necessity ofespecially providing means for accomplishing this result.

Figure 1 shows in side elevation a sufficient portion of awrapping-machine embodying this invention to enable the invention to beunderstood. Fig. 2 is a detail showing a side View of one of the arms ofthe orange-holder and its operating mechanism; Fig. 3, a detail showingthe upper end of the orangeholding arms; Fig. 4, a detail of a modifiedform of orange-holding arm; Fig. 5, a detail of the upper end of themodified orange-holding arms; Fig. 6, a plan view of a set of jawsadapted to gather in the edges of the wrapper and jam them together andmore or less corrugate or indent said gathered-in edges; Fig. 7, across-section of the set of jaws shown in Fig. 6, taken on the dottedline a: x; and Fig.8, a detail showing the wrapper upon the orange orother article with its edges gathered in, jammed together, and more orless corrugated or indented. j

The base A, stand or column b, rising therefrom and supporting the tableor framework for the operating parts, the centering device, consistingof a ring M7 and spring-acting 1ingers u8, down through which the orangeor article is forced by the plunger c', the arm c3, pivoted at c4 to thestand b, and link c2, connecting its forward end with the lower end ofthe plunger c', the stationarily-attached arms or brackets a d3 on thestand l), which afford bearings for the plunger c', and the wires 80,which project forward beneath the centering device and which hold thesevered wrapper directly beneath said centering device, are allsubstantially as shown in the patents referred to, to which referencemay be had.

The holder for the orange or other article which holds it and itswrapper while the edges of the wrapper are being gathered in and jammedtogether consists, essentially, of two arms s s', pivotally attached ats2 to a crossbar s3, secured to a vertical rod or bar s4, and said armsare bifurcated at their upper ends,

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presenting like forks arranged opposite to 35, as shown in Fig. 2, isprovided, which extends from tine to tine of the fork, and spiralsprings s connect the tines of the opposite forks, so that a ring-likeopening is produced at the upper end of the arms, which is shown assquare in Fig. 3, although it may be of other shape, and is expansible.

The spiral springs s join the two arms s s' together, and adjustablelimiting-stops 37 on a cross-bar S8, secured to the rod or bar s4, limitthe movement of said arms toward each other. By connecting the upper endof the arms s s' in this manner it will be seen that when the orange orother article and its wrapper are forced down into the grasp of the armsthey will yield and will also lay the wrapper upon or about the articlethe full extent of the grasp, which, by referring to Fig. l, will covera little more than one-half the article. These arms s s' are designed tobe raised and lowered in addition to yielding to receive the article andits wrapper, and to accomplish this result the rod or bar S4, to whichthey are pivotally connected,is movable vertically in bearings providedf or it in the stationary brackets a a3, and said arms are guided by thecrossbars as, there being two such bars provided, secured at one end tothe stand b and at the other end to the brackets. As a means of raisingsaid rod or bar and arms supported by it long spiral springs s areprovided, attached at their upper ends to the stationarilysupportedcross-bars as and attached at their lower ends to a collar or iiangeS10, adj ustably secured to the lower end of said rod or bar, saidsprings by their contractile force when permitted so to act liftingbodily the said rod or bar. The arms are thus raised to a point directlybeneath the wrapper-holder 80, so that the wrapper held by it and thearticle which is forced down through the centering device will be bothforced into the grasp of said arms, which are disposed t0 receive them,and said arms in their passage pass up through an opening formed by thejaws which are provided for gathering in and jamming together the edgesof the wrapper, as will be described. To the lower end of theverticallymovable rod or bar 34 a loop or strap S12 is secured, whichpasses down and around the actuatin g bar or lever c3 for the plunger,so that said bar may be raised independently of the actuating-lever c3,but will be lowered by said actuating-lever.

After the arms s s have been raised to receive an article and itswrapper and then lowered, bodily carrying both the article and itswrapper within its grasp, it is necessary that the article shall be thenheld while the edges of the wrapper are gathered in and jammed together,and instead of providing special actuating devices for said rod or barin order that it may dwell at such time while the gathering-in devicesoperate I have provided a locking device, shown as a latch S13, pivotedat 514 to the bracket a3 and pressed by a spring S15 into engagementwith the ange or collar 310 on said rod or bar, and an arm S16 projectsfrom said latch .313, which lies in the path of movement of the catch317 on the actuating-lever c3, to be struck by said catch and therebyoperated to move the latch and release the rod or bar. Thus when the rodor bar is depressed by the actuating-lever c3 it will be caught and heldby said latch S13 until released, and it is during this time that thegathering-in devices for the wrapper opcrate; also, it is necessarybefore releasing said locking device and permitting the arms s s toreturn to separate them sufficiently for the discharge of the wrappedarticle, and this is accomplished by extending the lower ends of thepivoted arms s s into the path of movement of two cam-like projectionsS18, secured to the actuating-lever c3, so that when saidactuating-lever is raised said cam-like projection 318 will strike thelower ends of said arms and by closing them together will separate theopposite ends of said arms for the discharge of the wrapped article. Itwill thus be seen that by the construction thus described the arms willrise and will receive in their grasp an article with its wrapper, whichis more or less wrapped about it as it is re ceived in its grasp, thatsaid arms will then descend, carrying bodily said article and itswrapper, and that they will become locked in their lowermost position,where they will dwell while the devices which gather in and jam togetherthe edges of the wrapper perform their work, and that said arms willthen be separated and the wrapped article discharged, after which thelocking device will be released and the arms permitted to rise for thenext article. It' desired, this holder may be employed in connectionwith a twisting device such'as Shown in the patents referred to, whichis designed and intended to twist the gathered-in edges of the wrapper,as well as in connection with the many other devices shown in saidpatent.

The devices herein shown for gathering in the edges of the wrapper whilethe article with its wrapper is held by the holder consist of a set ofjaws adapted to close together and gather in the edges of the wrapperand jam or pinch said edges tightly and by so doing will more or lesscorrugate or indent the wrapper, and by so gathering together the edgesof the wrapper and corrugating or indenting them, as shown in Fig. 8,said wrapper will be sutliciently secured for all practical purposes.This set of jaws comprises two sets or piles of plates o t', each cutand made to present two arms, projecting at right angles with relationto eachother, and said plates c o of one set are joined together by abolt c', passing through them at the junction of the arms, and in orderthat said plates maybe held more or less separated washers 122 ofsuitable thickness are interposed between them, and, furthermore, inorder that said plates may be separated with a certain degree of freedoma spring- IOO IIO

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acting washer @Sis provided for the bolt; The uppermost plate of the setof plates c v is attached tothe extremities of two bars 04, ar-

. The other set or pile of plates, which form a coperative part of theset of jaws, likewise consists of a pile of plates 05125, each cut topresent two arms at right angles with relation to each other, like theplatesvv, and said plates o5 v5 are arranged in a pile opposite theplates mi and so disposed with relation to said plates o i: that thearms thereof will occupy positions between said plates 'u o and movefreely back and forth.

The plates 12,5 v5 are secured together at their junction by the bolto6, and-washers of suitable thickness are interposed between the platesf0.5 o5, in order that they may be held separated sufticientl y toreceive between them the plates o U, as aforesaid, and in order thatsaid plates fur o5 may yield somewhat bodily a spring acting washer o7is provided. The plates o5 o5 are secured to a bar v8, having itsbearings in the table and movable longitudinally in parallelism with thebars v4 o4. It is designed and intended that said plates/v n and platesv5 v5 shall move toward and from each other and thus constitute a set ofjaws which gather in the edges of the wrapper and jam them firmlytogether or pinch them, and as they are made quite.thin and heldseparated the gathered-in edges of the wrapper will be more or lesscorrugated or indented or scored to better hold together.

As a means of moving the two sets of plates I have herein formed uponthe adjoining sides or edges of the bars r4 r4 rack-teeth, and upon eachside of the central bar similar rack-teeth and two pinions v9 @lo areprovided, turning in suitable bearings in the table,one of which,

as o9, meshes with the rack-teeth on the bars U4 11B and the other ofwhich, as 1110', meshes with the rack-teeth on the other bar o4 and onthe opposite side of said bar t8, and said pinions are revolved inopposite ways, and the bars o4 LrL thus move Oneway, while the bar v8will be moved in the opposite way. As a simple way of thus turning thepinions in opposite ways a double rack-bar 'U12 is provided, therack-teeth upon one side of which engage the pinion of and therack-teeth upon the other side of which engagethe pinion @10. Therack-bar @12 is reciprocated longitudinally to thus turn the pinions,and to thus reciprocate said rack-bar it is provided with an elongatedslot @1,4 at one end, which serves as a guide-slot for the bar, the mainshaft passing through said slot and said bar thereby working upon saidshaft as a rest or support, and upon one side of saidvbar a projection1215 is formed, which is engaged by a pin o1, projecting from a disk o,secured to said shaft, and upon each revolution of said disk its pinstrikes said projection andv moves the rackbar one way a predetermineddistance. During the revolution of said disk said pin o16 passesl bysaid projection @15, and when the rack-bar is thus disengaged a springfuis, attached at one end to the rack-bar and at the other end to theframe, acts to restore or return said bar. It is obvious that this setof jaws may be moved toward and from each other in many different ways,so I do not desire to limit my invention to the particular way hereinshown, although this particular way possesses some advantages owing toits simplicity of construction; nor do I' desire to limit the inventionto any `particular construction of jaws so long as they operate to jamthe gathered-in edges of the wrapper together and more or less corrugateor indent them.

It is obvious that a set of jaws may operate to gather in and jamtogether and score the wrapper regardless of how the article to bewrapped may be held, and therefore I desire it to be understood that sofar as said jaws are concerned other parts of the machine may beconstructed in any desirable way.

`I claiml. In a wrapping-machine, a set of corrugating or indenting jawsconsisting of two piles of plates, the plates of each pile beingseparated to provide spaces in which the plates of the other pile work,one of said piles of plates comprising several two-armed 'platesconnected together at the junction of the arms thereof, leaving `theextremities of the arms free to work in the spaces of the other pile,substantially as described.

2. In a'wrapping-m'achine, a set of corrugating or indenting jawsconsisting of two piles of two-armed plates, the plates of each pilebeing connected together at the junction of the arms thereof, leavingthe extremities of the arms free and separated to receive between themthe arms of the other pile, and means for moving said piles of platestoward and from each other, substantially as described. l

. 3. In a wrapping-machine, a set of corrugating or indenting jawsconsisting of two piles of plates, means for holding the plates of eachpile together and separated short distances apart to provide spaces inwhich the plates of the cooperating pile work, and a yielding device foreach pile of plates constructed and arranged to permit the plates ofeach pile to separate more or less as required, substantially asdescribed.

4. In a wrapping-machine, a holder, means for raising and lowering it,means for forcing the article with its wrapper into said holder when thelatter is in its elevated position, a set of corrugating or indentingjaws, means for separating them to provide an opening for the passage ofthe holder, and means for thereafter closing them together as the holderresumes its lowermost position to gather in IOO IIO

the edges of the wrapper, jam them together and more or less corrugateor indent them, substantially as described.

5. In a wrapping-machine, a holder, means for raising and lowering it,means for forcing the article with its wrapper into said holder when thelatter is in its elevated position, a set of jaws, means for separatingthem to provide an opening for the passage of the holder, and means forthereafter closing them together as the holder resumes its lowermostposition to gather in the edges of the wrapper, substantially asdescribed.

6. In awrappingmachine, a set of corrugating or indenting jawsconsisting of two piles of separated plates yieldingly connectedtogether, the plates of each pile being cut to present arms projectingat substantially right angles with relation to each other, and means formoving said piles of plates toward and from each other, substantially asdescribed.

'7. In a wrapping-machine, a set of corrugating or indenting jawsconsisting of two piles of plates, the plates of each pile being formedto present arms projecting at substantially right angles to each otherand said piles of right-angular plates being placed opposi te eachother, a bolt connecting the plates of each pile together at thejunction of the right-angularly-projecting arms, leaving the extremityof the arms of each pile free and sepa-rated to receive between them thearms of the other pile, and means for moving said piles of plates towardand from each other, substantially as described.

8. In a wrapping-machine, a set of jaws adapted to gather in the edgesof the wrapper and jam said gathered-in edges together, rack-barsconnected to said jaws, two pinions in engagement therewith, and meanssubstantially as described for revolving said pinions in opposite ways,substantially as described.

9. In a wrapping-machine, a holder having at its upper end an expansibleunbroken ringlike opening into the grasp of which the orange or otherarticle and its wrapper are forced, and by which said wrapper is more orless gathered about the article, substantially as described.

l0. In a wrapping-machine, a rising-andfallin g holder having at itsupper end an expansible ring-like opening into the grasp of which theorange and its wrapper are forced and by which said wrapper is more orless gathered about the article, substantially as described.

11. In a wrapping-machine, a holder consisting of arms connectedtogether at their upper ends by spiral springs to thus form an expandingring-like opening down through which the orange or other article and itswrapper are forced and by which said wrapper is more or less gatheredabout the article, substantially as described.

12. In a wrapping-machine, a holder consisting of a pair of armsconnected together at their upper ends to form a ring-like openingthereat, into the grasp of which the orange or other article is forcedwith.its wrapper', and means for separating said arms for the dischargeof the wrapped article, substantially as described.

13. In a wrapping-machine, a holder con sisting of arms having aneXpansible ring-like opening at their upper ends, means for raising andlowering said arms, and means for separating them for the discharge ofthe wrapped article, substantially as described. 14. In awrapping-machine, a holder consisting of yielding arms, means forraising said arms, means for forcing the article with its wrapper intothe grasp of said arms, means for lowering the arms, and means forseparating them for the discharge of the wrapped article, substantiallyas described.

l5. In a wrapping-machine, a holder consisting of yielding arms, meansfor raising them, means for forcing the article with its wrapper intothe grasp of said arms, means for lowering the arms, carrying thearticle and its wrapper, a locking device for holding them in theirlowermost positions, means for separating them for the discharge of thewrapped article, and means for releasing said locking device,substantially as described.

16. In a wrapping-machine, a holder consisting of yielding arms, meansfor raising them, means for forcing the article with its wrapper intothe grasp of said arms, means for lowering the arms, a locking devicefor holding them in their lowermost position, gathering-in devices forthe edges of the wrapper operative while the article is thus held by thearms, means for then separating said arms for the discharge of thewrapped article, and means for releasing said locking device for thereturn of the arms, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in thepresence of two subscribing witnesses.

SETH D. TRIPP.

Witnesses:

B. J. NoYEs, HARRY O. ROBINSON.

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